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The guest list IS the budget. Do the math before the venue tour.
Wedding budgets break in two places: the per-guest costs that scale silently, and the charges that appear after the quotes (service fees, gratuities, alterations). This calculator builds the wedding from its real categories — venue and catering per head, attire, photo, flowers, music, rings, and a surprise buffer — then converts the total into the monthly savings number that decides the date.
Engaged couples use it before the first venue tour, when "what can we afford" needs to be a number instead of a fight. The per-guest math reframes the guest list conversation, and the monthly savings line sets the date honestly.
All-in, more than the catering quote. Example: 100 guests at $120 venue+catering, with $2,500 attire, $3,000 photo, $2,000 flowers, $1,200 music, $1,000 rings, $800 misc, and a 10% buffer → $24,750 total, or $247.50 per guest. The catering line is $120 of that; the other half is everything else.
Cut guests, not categories. Venue and catering are about half the budget, so every 10 guests at $120 a head moves the total $1,320 with the buffer. Cutting the guest list from 120 to 80 saves more than any amount of DIY centerpieces — and the guests you cut genuinely do not mind.
Service charges (often 18–22% on catering, not included in the per-plate quote), gratuities, alterations, vendor meals, marriage license, postage for invites, and the rehearsal dinner. That is why the buffer is a line item: 10% minimum, 15% if the venue quote says "plus plus."